According to U.S. Military Theory, We Can't Win in Iraq - "Lose Moral Legitimacy, Lose the War."

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/48846/

According to U.S. Military Theory, We Can't Win in Iraq

Bush's new top commander in Iraq says he thinks the war in Iraq is winnable, but his recent manual on counterinsurgency suggests otherwise. snip

During the Algerian war of independence between 1954 and 1962, French leaders decided to permit torture against suspected insurgents. Though they were aware that it was against the law and morality of war, they argued that:

This was a new form of war and these rules did not apply.

The threat the enemy represented, communism, was a great evil that justified extraordinary means.
The application of torture against insurgents was measured and nongratuitous.

This official condoning of torture on the part of French Army leadership had several negative consequences. It empowered the moral legitimacy of the opposition, undermined the French moral legitimacy, and caused internal fragmentation among serving officers that led to an unsuccessful coup attempt in 1962. In the end, failure to comply with moral and legal restrictions against torture severely undermined French efforts and contributed to their loss despite several significant military victories. ... France eventually recognized Algerian independence in July 1963. snip

The counterinsurgency Field Manual hints at an answer. It comes as the heading to the Algerian case study quoted above: "Lose Moral Legitimacy, Lose the War."

Petraeus the general still insists that the war can be won; Petraeus the theorist would seem to disagree.

[WinkyDink]

1. Apparently, "Petraeus the general" is actually "Petraeus the toady".

[Jonathan50]

2. Petraeus nickname amongst some of his troops.

http://balkin.blogspot.com/2007_01_07_balkin_archive.html

<blockquote>Incidentally, I offer the following sidenote about General Petraeus, by almost all accounts an enormously accomplished man: A student of mine at the UT Law School, who had had combat experience in both Afghanistan and Iraq, referred to him as "General Betrayus" because of what was thought to be his inordinate interest in good publicity (and presumed self-promotion) rather than concern for his troops. I have no idea whether this is fair, but I do know that this is what my sober and thoughtful student told me.</blockquote>

[Old and In the Way]

3. That's scary...but I suspect that what we are seeing now are people being put

into command positions that are willing to sacrifice principles and judgment, but have 1 important defining characteristic...they'll do whatever Gerorge wants.

[Toots]

4. Aww but who bestows the moral legitimacy?

It would appear in our case the legitimacy comes from the Bush* Administration. They don't much care one whit what the rest of the world believes or the majority of Americans either for that matter..